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Anniversary of Edwin Hubble’s Great Discovery

Hubble space telescope in orbit with earth below

On December 30, 1924, astronomer Edwin P. Hubble (1889-1953) announced his discovery of the spiral nebula Andromeda, proving for the first time that our own Milky Way was but one of many galaxies in the vast universe. The Hubble Space Telescope, the development of which was led by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. was named for the distinguished astronomer. The above photograph shows the repaired and reconfigured Hubble as seen by the STS-109 crew soon after its release from Columbia’s payload bay on March 9, 2002.

Image Credit: NASA

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Last Updated
Apr 17, 2023
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NASA Hubble Mission Team

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A close-up of a spiral galaxy, seen face-on. Its center is a bright white point, surrounded by a large yellowish oval with thin lines of dust swirling in it. From the sides of the oval emerge two bright spiral arms which wind through the round disk of the galaxy, filled with shining pink spots where stars are forming and more dark reddish dust. Many stars are visible in the foreground, over and around the galaxy.
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